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HS2 train stop in Sheffield

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That's running through the Outokumpu works - aren't they still in use? Is it really a good idea to demolish them?

 

By Mosborough Parkway there's a much better site, which would avoid any need to run through the Meadowhall area.

 

this could make use of the old great central routes to

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No, that's not the only reason it lies in London. It's there because geographically London is the nearest area to Europe so quite appropriate that it should be so densely populated and have the kind of power and influence that that large population dictates.

 

There are other cities, further south than London, London is the capital for historic reasons (and wasn't always the capital).

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Read somewhere recently (possibly on the forum) that when Virgin were looking to bid the East Coast Main Line they wanted to upgrade it in the same way that the West Coast was done, but that they wanted to put in a high speed branch to Sheffield. This might help with the justification to spend a fortune on the ECML further down to remove existing bottlenecks.

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There are other cities, further south than London, London is the capital for historic reasons (and wasn't always the capital).

 

I'm well aware of that, historically the thing that London had going for it was the River Thames which enabled large amounts of goods to come well inland by ship from around the world.

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Hey just had a thought, by the time this all takes place oil will have little time left so why don't we just use one of the carriageways of the M1? Big sweeping bends with minimal gradients.

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Read somewhere recently (possibly on the forum) that when Virgin were looking to bid the East Coast Main Line they wanted to upgrade it in the same way that the West Coast was done, but that they wanted to put in a high speed branch to Sheffield. This might help with the justification to spend a fortune on the ECML further down to remove existing bottlenecks.

Hah! Equally, the Midland Main Line could be electrified (but it won't be).

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In today's Star our Lib Dem leader councillor Shaffaq Mohammed calls for the HS2 to have a station located on the old Victoria Station site at the Wicker.

 

http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/local/barnsley/bring_high_speed_rail_to_wicker_1_3663432

 

His main argument seems to be that this location is easier to get to for most of Sheffield's citizens than the site at Meadowhall/Tinsley and that it would help to regenerate a run down part of the city. Basically does anybody think that traversing the Wicker area is easier than heading out towards Meadowhall/Tinsley. The answer can be seen by the number of people who choose to shop at Meadowhall rather than in the city centre and especially around the Wicker end of town.

I'm sorry but this is the kind of small minded parochial thinking combined with a complete lack of understanding as to what HS2 is about that really frustrates me. This is not a scheme that is about helping to regenerate a localised part of a city. It's about providing high quality sustainable regeneration for a whole region based on the idea that the speed and connectivity of the train will make most parts of England become 'suburbs of London' giving people both in London and elsewhere a more 21st century lifestyle of living in a place they want to live but still being in commuting distance of work from almost anywhere in the English regions. When you can travel from Sheffield to London in the same time you can get from Sheffield to Manchester you don't need to be a genius to understand the benefits that will bring.

Does councillor Mohammed understand that these trains will be about a mile long and will need a platform of equivalent length? Does he realise that each train will probably carry over 1000 people? Does he not realise that the amount of car parking spaces at the station will need to be at least in the high hundreds if not thousands? Does he not realise that, geographically (putting aside Doncaster which as he rightly says, when it comes to commuting, most Doncaster people would probably be better to use their own service to London. The time benefits are not substantial for Donny people to use HS2), the Tinsley site is more central to the region as a whole (Barnsley, Rotherham, Chesterfield as well as having easy access for Sheffielders) with the M1 giving quick access.

The only conclusion that any right minded person who understands 21st century transport issues can come to is that the Tinsley site would provide maximum benefit for the region as a whole and for the HS2 program which will need to maximise it's revenue from each region it serves if it is to be viable over the long term.

There simply is no other option, it's Tinsley or bust.

Redevelop the airport next door by extending the runway and turning it into an international airport and you would have Sheffield as the major powerhouse city in the north of England within 10 years with unrivalled transport connections in the UK.

Are we really going to be so small minded and parochial that we won't push for best national/international transport connection hub in the UK?

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Are we really going to be so small minded and parochial that we won't push for best national/international transport connection hub in the UK?

Might have been a rhetorical question; but, for most Sheffielders, the answer is usually going to be "Yes".

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Might have been a rhetorical question; but, for most Sheffielders, the answer is usually going to be "Yes".

 

So true Jeffrey and yet, when opportunities like this present themselves to improve the region for a large number of people, they seem to want to turn it down and continue moaning that the place is going to the dogs and there are no jobs/opportunities for people.

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Don't forget to allow for the width of the track - 22 metres plus 25 metres each side buffer zone. Also allow for construction area and service roads.

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